Your Guide to Smart Spending in April

💡 Tip of the month: You’re probably overpaying for your phone plan

One of the most effective ways to reduce your spending is by optimizing your recurring expenses — and your mobile plan is a good place to start. I always recommend getting a plan with low-cost operators instead of the big names like Telekom and Vodafone. Sure, these major providers might have better coverage, but if you’re in a bigger city, you’re unlikely to notice a difference — except in the price.

My operator of choice is Winsim. They have some of the best-value mobile deals in Germany: 8GB for €5.99/month, 12GB for €7.99, 20GB for €9.99, or 40GB for €14.99. These prices apply if you sign up for a 24-month contract, but if you'd rather have more flexibility, you can opt for a monthly contract instead — that adds just €2/month. There's also a one-time activation fee of €9.99 (reduced from €19.99). For comparison, Telekom’s 10GB plan on a 2-year contract is €19,95/month with a €39.99 activation fee — almost 3 times the price.

All Winsim plans include unlimited calls and texts within Germany, plus EU roaming. And yes, you can bring your current number over when switching, so no need to notify half your contact list. I’ve been with Winsim for many years and have no intention of changing — the price-to-performance ratio is hard to beat. If you’re currently paying more, it might be worth taking a closer look at Winsim plans.

🔥 April’s Top Deals

€10 off your first ride with Bliq

If you're in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, or Köln and use ride-hailing apps now and then, Bliq is worth checking out. It’s a ride-share price comparison app that shows you prices across services like Uber, Bolt, FreeNow, and official taxis — and also includes its own rides, which you’ll see listed in the app as Bliq Rides. You can also link your ride-sharing accounts to see personalised offers and discounts directly in the app. For your first ride, Bliq is offering €10 off – this could cover the whole fare depending on how far you’re going! Use this link or enter the code D23F08 when you sign up to claim it.

iHerb Autoship & Save deal

iHerb, my favorite health and wellness store, recently launched an Autoship & Save feature that lets you schedule repeat deliveries for things (like supplements, skincare, pantry items) you buy regularly — and get a discount for doing so. You can set the delivery frequency anywhere from once a month to once every six months.

Right now, iHerb is offering 20–30% (depending on the item) off your first Autoship order and 10% off every one after that. Here’s the kicker: you can pause or cancel the schedule at any time — including right after your first delivery. So even if you have no interest in ongoing subscriptions, you can still take advantage of the discount. Which is exactly what I did! To make the most of the offer, I stocked up on a few products I use regularly and went for the biggest sizes available (e.g., a three-month supply of supplements). As always, there’s €1 cashback for every product review (sometimes €2), Trial Pricing discounts on new products, plus 2.5% cashback from Shoop. After all that, my €152 order came down to €83. No complaints there. Shop iHerb here or take a look at my full guide to iHerb for more tips on how to save.

€100 bonus from Berliner Volksbank

Berliner Volksbank (serves Berlin and Brandenburg) is currently offering a €100 bonus if you open a new account by May 19. To qualify, you need to receive at least one incoming payment (only salary, pension, or student aid count) of €500 or more within the first three months.

There are three account options to choose from. All of them include a Girocard (which is unfortunately still useful in daily life in Germany) and a credit card, plus free ATM withdrawals in Germany. Here is how the options compare:

• Standard: €3.95/month.

• Gold: €8.95/month. Adds travel insurance, no foreign transaction fees, and free ATM withdrawals abroad.

• Blue Orange: Free if you’re under 30 and includes all the Gold benefits with no monthly fee and no minimum deposit.

€100 is a solid welcome bonus for relatively few conditions, so if you're looking for a simple everyday account with a Girocard and don’t mind the monthly fee, the standard account is a decent option — and if you're under 30, the Blue Orange account is a no-brainer. The Gold account only really makes sense if you’re specifically looking for a travel card — and even then, I’d probably go for something else, like a free credit card from Consors Finanz with no foreign exchange fees and free ATM withdrawals worldwide.

🤑 More deals

• Uber Eats: New users get €30 off across two orders (€15 off each, minimum spend €20). Already a customer? Order with a friend who hasn’t signed up yet, or take advantage of the 2-for-1 deals and other promos that Uber Eats runs regularly. It’s my favorite food delivery app when it comes to value for money!

• Amazon Music: Three-month free trial (worth €33) instead of the usual 30 days. You get ad-free music, podcasts, offline downloads, and everything else you’d expect — all in a nice, sleek app. If you’re using Spotify, this offer is an easy way to save on the subscription fee for a few months. Cancel anytime before the trial ends.

• HelloFresh: New customers — and anyone who cancelled more than a year ago — can get their first box for €19.49. That covers three meals for two people, which works out to about €3.25 per meal. The second box is €32, the third is €37 — which I think is really good value for the quality, but you can cancel right after the first box too. I’ve been using it again recently and it’s been great not having to think about what to cook. Get the deal.

• Payback Gift Cards: 20x Payback points (10% off) Zalando, Nike, and Google Play gift cards in Payback. The best thing about buying discounted gift cards is that you can combine them with sales and promo codes, so you're basically stacking the discounts. I pay for most of my Zalando shopping with gift cards nowadays — this is one my favorite ways to spend my Payback points. Find the 20x coupons in your Payback account (filter for Payback Gutscheine and Payback Prämien), and read more on how to use gift cards to save money in this guide.

🎁 Freebies

• Somersby Zero: You can get your money back on up to two 0.33L cans of non-alcoholic cider — one Apple Zero, one Yuzu & Lemon Zero. Just make sure both are on the same receipt. The weekly limit is 2,500 submissions and it resets every Monday, so submit early in the week. Claim here.

• Kinder Cards & Kinder Duo: Buy a promotional pack with a “Gratis testen” sticker and enter the code found inside the packaging. You can claim one of each per person and bank account — maximum two redemptions. Submit your codes here — valid until May 31, 2025.

• Kinder Happy Hippo: Same setup — buy a pack with the promotional sticker, find the code inside, and submit it online. One redemption per person. Claim here — valid until May 31, 2025. Kinder, please keep these deals coming 🔥

• Perwoll Detergent: This one’s for Perwoll for Light Colors (€6.95 value) – which is the best-smelling laundry detergent, according to me. Buy a bottle with a promotional sticker by April 30, and upload your receipt by May 15. Claim here.

• Persil Detergent: Valid for Persil liquid or pods (up to €6.35 value) with a promotional sticker. Buy by April 30, and upload your receipt by May 15. Submit here.

I really like money-back promos and find them to be one of the most underrated ways to save money on shopping in Germany! Quite a few freebie offers from the March and February issue like Ariel detergent and Syoss haircare are still running too — check them out before they expire.